It was a Buddhist funeral for the last journey. We took part in the chantings and prayers, and it felt meaningful, as we hoped he'd be guided to the Pure Land. He had only just taken refuge about 5 days before he left, so it may not be all-so-clear for him.
The Buddhist-style is quite unlike the common Taoist-style, with bands and drums and noise. It was more solemn and peaceful. There is really no need to make it into an extravagant affair with Taoist bands to show anything to anyone. I guess the main geist of the Buddhist-style is primarily to guide the person to the desired place and direction, and not to linger around or be distracted by other forces.
I tried to ask questions to clear doubts, like, the significance of certain practices or procedures. I found them meaningful. I also found out the circumstances at which 外公died, and realised it was a lucky thing that it was not of pain from the cancer. It was also coincidental (or was it?) that he left when all his children were around, and it was very lucky that Dad the Buddhist was around to immediately cover him with the 往生被。
The burial place was also heavenly. I must say, Malaysian graves are way much bigger than Singaporean ones, not to mention that Singaporean ones will eventually be exhumed after a certain period of time.
The burial place is named a 'Villa' and is not publicly owned. It is really a very pretty resting place for the dead. They even had this 升天仪式，which I really must admit, was spectacular. It was held at an air-conditioned hall, internally decorated like you're in heaven. Then, the lights dimmed, a poignant poem was played, then a Buddha statue appeared with bright golden lights and majestic music. You can even hear birds chirping in the background! Then Buddha's forehead had a green laser emanating, and the laser scanned in all directions. The majestic music complemented with His greatness. Then, you see smoke and lights originating from the person's Tablet, and the smoke and lights went all the way up and out of the hall, right in front of Buddha's presence. I'm sure this is the part of ‘升天’. All in all, it was a really spectacular and unforgettable show, with good music and lighting effects. It was really touching.
The previous funeral that I was deeply involved in, was when I was still pretty ignorant of the happenings. I might not even had started school then. This current involvement really opened my eyes to alot of things. Being engaged in most things throughout, I truly felt the meaning. The questions asked helped. There were mixed feelings throughout the 2 days, but it was mostly of being touched. It wasn't pretty much a depressing event, as it was very much believed that it is a good thing he left before more sufferings come.
人生是黑白的.
1:12 AM <3
>>>
